France beat Morocco 2-0 in the semifinals of the World Cup at the Al Bayt Stadium yesterday’s night to end Morocco’s dream run in Qatar.
An early goal from Theo Hernandez and a late tap-in from substitute Randal Kolo Muani earned defending champions France a hard-fought win over a valiant Morocco side that made African World Cup history at the 2022 tournament.
Didier Deschamps’ team will now face Argentina, who sealed a 3-0 win over Croatia on Tuesday, as the two heavyweights meet for the first time in a World Cup final.
France poured cold water on the hopes of another Moroccan miracle inside of five minutes when a scramble in the penalty area saw the ball fall to Theo Hernandez, who met it at the back post and pounded a volley past Yassine Bounou.
Despite conceding early, Morocco grew into the match and put consistent pressure on France toward the end of the second half with Jawad El Yamiq’s audacious overhead kick forcing one of several first-half saves by Hugo Lloris.
Morocco came out squarely on the front foot after the break and Yahya Attiat-Allah spurned a golden opportunity to equalise as they spent much of the first 10 minutes of the second half on France’s defensive end of the field.
Kylian Mbappe’s mazy run through tight space in the Morocco penalty area led to France’s second after the PSG star’s half-shot dribbled toward the goal and Kolo Muani pounced to double the lead and book a return to the final for Les Bleus.
Morocco coach Walid Regragui led the Atlas Lions on an improbable run in Qatar, overseeing a group-winning campaign, a round-of-16 win over Spain and victory against Portugal that made them the first African side to reach the semifinals before ultimately losing to France.
